This is a guest post by Brian Benton of http://CAD-a-Blog.com. If you would like to submit a guest post please email me for details.

Many Autodesk clients are on a subscription plan. Autodesk Subscription provides users with more than just the latest version of your software from Autodesk. It entitles you to free downloads! One such download is Autodesk Impression. Impression is a program that enables you to directly import AutoCAD geometry and stylize it into design presentation documents. That means you can take the linework from your design files and make them look spectacular! Impression can color, shade, fill, pattern, and display your drawing in a way that was once only done by hand. You don’t have to be an artist to use this program. In fact, it works very similarly to AutoCAD. If you use AutoCAD and you need to create compelling presentation drawings, then try Impression.

Impression works with AutoCAD. Create your linework in AutoCAD and then import it directly to Impression. That can be done in either of two ways: From inside Impression, or from inside AutoCAD.

Once you have your linework in Impression, start applying styles. These styles apply stroke features, fill features, and other special effects to enhance your drawing. Impression works with layers, just like in AutoCAD. You can apply the styles by layer or by object, just like in AutoCAD. It also has blocks, text and simple drawing features available in it. You can save your blocks or styles in a library so that you can use them later. If you save your style layout, you can use it again on a different drawing. For example, if you have a project that needs two presentation drawing made, save the styles. When you load it into a new drawing, it will automatically apply that style to your new drawings. If you are using the same layers, then you won’t even have to do anything! Imagine that, create a presentation drawing by doing nothing except importing linework and a previously made style! You can’t do that by hand! Remember that I mentioned it works with AutoCAD’s geometry directly? If the linework changes, simply update it in Impression. The styles will be applied and you are done. Just click the “Update Geometry” button and there you go.

Autodesk Impression is a great tool that anyone can use. It’s free to members of Autodesk’s Subscription plan and easy to use. It really won’t take you long to figure it out.

If you are on Autodesk subscription give impression a try.

Brian Benton
http://CAD-a-Blog.com
http://twitter.com/bcbenton

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